Cities Step Up Worker Protections - Has Yours?

The United States is way behind most other western nations in protecting its workers. While Congress has dropped into paralysis, U.S. cities have stepped in where Congress and the states have failed to protect working Americans. Florida is one of the most anti-employee states in the nation. The cities here could do much to help working people if they had the political will.

Here are some examples of how cities are stepping up to help workers:

Intern sexual harassment: New York City, along with Washington, D.C., Delaware, and Oregon, have laws against sexually harassing unpaid interns. There is not a single federal law banning intern sexual harassment. Title VII doesn’t cover it because they aren’t “employees.” Same with most state laws including Florida. So, yay for sexual harassers. High school and college students are fair game.

Paid sick leave: San Francisco, Oakland, Emeryville, Los Angeles, Berkeley and San Diego; Washington, D.C.; New York City; Seattle, Tacoma and Spokane; Philadelphia; Montgomery County (Md.); Chicago and Cook County; St. Paul, Minneapolis and Duluth); Newark, Jersey City, Irvington, Passaic, East Orange, Paterson, Trenton, Montclair, Bloomfield, New Brunswick, Elizabeth, Plainfield and Morristown; and Austin all have some form of paid sick leave. Eleven states including California provide some form of paid sick leave. Not Florida, of course.

Paid safe days: The cities that provide paid "safe" days, giving time for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking to seek services include: San Francisco, Emeryville, San Diego, Los Angeles, Berkeley and Santa Monica; Washington, D.C.; Seattle, Tacoma and Spokane; Philadelphia; Montgomery County (Md.); Chicago and Cook County; Minneapolis, St. Paul and Duluth; New Brunswick; and Austin.

Salary history: 13 states and 11 cities have banned employers from asking about salary history. The reason behind the legislation is that basing pay on prior salary can lock in pay discrimination. The sponsor of the Philadelphia ordinance explained: “Simply put, when a woman is paid less at the beginning of her career she will continue to earn less throughout her career. By eliminating the question of salary history we will be one step closer to decreasing the wage gap.”

Ban the box:  33 states and over 150 cities and counties have adopted “ban the box” laws. These laws generally prevent employers from asking about applicant arrests or convictions at the beginning of the application process, and only allow inquiries after the applicant passes their initial screening. Why? Because about 70 million Americans have some criminal record, and the majority of them are minorities. An entire class of citizens has been made almost completely unemployable due to criminal records that have nothing to do with their ability to do jobs.

Predictable schedules: San Francisco, Emeryville, San Jose, Chicago, New York, Seattle and Washington, D.C. have ordinances requiring that employers give specified advance notice of work schedules, advance notice of shift cancellations, and/or predictability pay for last minute cancellations. Oregon is the first state to enact such a law.

Paid family leave: 35 cities/counties and 11 states have paid parental leave laws.

Right to vacation: New York City would require most employers to offer 10 days of paid vacation to employees under this proposed ordinance

Firing for just cause: This proposed law would prevent employers in New York from firing on a whim.

Minimum wage: Florida’s legislature has prohibited local ordinances raising minimum wage, and that was just upheld. Sad. Many other cities around the nation have raised minimum wage for their workers.

Some cities that have led the way on employee rights are San Francisco, New York, A list of San Francisco’s very pro-employee ordinances is here. New York’s employee rights page is here.

So talk to your local elected officials about stepping up to help working people. If the state and federal governments won’t help workers, it will be up to the cities to protect them.

Florida Democrats Take Another Swing At Pro-Employee Legislation (That Won't Pass)

Another legislative session coming up, some more pro-employee legislation that will not pass. But here’s what some Florida Democrats (okay, I didn’t check them all, but c’mon, what are the odds that any of the co-sponsors of any pro-employee laws are Republicans?) are trying to pass in 2016 to help Florida employees:

$15 minimum wage: SB 6 and HB 109 would raise Florida’s minimum wage to $15/hour

ERA: SCR 74 and HCR 8001 would ratify the Equal Rights Amendment. Better late than never.

Sexual Orientation: SB 120 and HB 45would add sexual orientation and gender identity to prohibited categories of discrimination in the workplace.

Social Media Privacy: SB 186 would prohibit employers from demanding your social media passwords.

Unemployment and Domestic Violence: SB 188 protects employees who leave or lose jobs due to domestic violence from being disqualified for unemployment benefits.

Paid Sick Leave: SB 294 and HB 205 would require state and local governments with at least 9 employees to provide paid sick leave to employees. Why only government employers? I'm really not sure that's what the sponsors meant to do, but that's what it says employers are.

Paid Family Leave: SB 384 and HB 603 would require employers to provide paid leave similar to FMLA for birth or adoption of a child and care in the first year, but it applies to employees who work at least 20 hours a week, applies to employers with at least 15 employees, and would permit up to 6 weeks of protected leave. Creates a rebuttable presumption that any demotion or discharge taken within 90 days against an employee who takes leave is a violation.

Ban the Box: SB 448 and HB 353 would prohibit employers from asking about criminal history in initial employment applications.

If you support any of these bills, start calling and writing your legislators now. Especially the Republicans. If any of these proposed laws get overwhelming support, they may just have a chance. My prediction: DOA.

Think Sexism Doesn’t Exist? Read This

I did a post on AOL Jobs about family responsibilities discrimination, and wow, was I shocked at the comments. When people get to comment on the Internet anonymously, their mental filter gets set in the “off” position sometimes. I know some judges and my colleagues on the management side think these kinds of attitudes don’t exist anymore. But employers tend to be on their best behavior in front of their lawyers and in court. They’re shocked that they could be accused of such a heinous act.

Well, here’s what some of those corporate clients and management-side discrimination defendants really think. Even after 25 years of practicing employment law, I didn’t expect employers and managers to post comments like these. I left off the user names to protect the guilty, but you can go to the post and see them for yourself.

How would you like to have this guy as your boss?:

Maybe you should have thought of that before you spread your legs and became a walking sperm bank. If you can't afford to take the time to deliver a baby, maybe you can't afford to have a child at all. A business is an entity designed to produce a product or service in order to produce a profit. It is not a social service agency, a rehab agency, or a day care. The business was not created in order to create jobs. The jobs come as a result of the success that the company has enjoyed as a result of producing it's product or services. You do not have a right to co opt my business interests in order to facilitate your desire to procreate or your failure to control your desires. Just keep pushing this feel good stuff onto business and watch your jobs flee to China and India.

Or this one?:

Pregnancy is a very temporary medical condition. But soooo many women take full advantage of it in the workplace and elsewhere, demanding to be treated in special ways and to be given a lot of slack when it comes to work production, dependability, reliability, attendance, and/or tardiness. This puts a lot of extra work on the shoulders of non-pregnant workers and the managers. "Is Susie Broodmare going to show up for work today? Or will she say she has to leave four hours early for a doctor's appointment for the third time this week? Will she say she feels uncomfortable so can't do her job at all today but expects full pay?" It's well past time for pregnant women to be held accountable for their decision to get pregnant so that it doesn't adversely affect others, especially in the workplace.

Susie Broodmare. How lovely. I wonder if that’s what he calls them in the exit interview.

This guy better have a very small company or he’s a defense lawyer’s nightmare:

As an employer, I think the running of my business comes before your personal problems and if I think I can hire someone better than you, more dedicated than you, with no medical or family problems, you're fired. Take responsibility for yourself and don't expect your employer to subsidize your lifestyle choices. Want to take off 12 weeks to have a baby? Than you better be absolutely brilliant at your job if you expect it to be there when you come back. Otherwise, someone else will be sitting in that chair. I don't owe you anything but the pay check you worked for and whatever else we agreed on when you were hired. Nothing more.

How about this one?:

This is pretty incredible. So I can apply for a job with a great big baby-belly and say, "I saw your help wanted sign, so I'm applying for your 15th position. Here's the deal. I'll let you train me and pay me, then as soon as I'm "line-ready" I'm taking off for as long as I see fit to have my kid leaving you short an employee AGAIN" and any business I walk into HAS to hire me or risk government BS? It's no wonder the corporate world is getting the Hell out of America!

This one is a real charmer, and smart too: “I dont think YOU have right in working in somebodyelse Company, than you become pregnant. Its your businnes and your partner businnes.. once you step out.. you need to use what you save. No mercy. Let's be real..... You want family (boths) have pay the price...”

This one posted lots of comments. Here are some of my faves: “Noone else but the employee is responsible for making sure that they are ready and able to work. If you want to work for a company with very lax absentee policies, then go find one. Society suffers when we have to assume the responsibility for those who do not prepare and plan for pregnancies/illness etc.”

AND

If they can't afford it, they shouldn't get pregnant. What ever happened to PLANNING a family? If one had to sacrifice and reduce a lifestyle, then that is what has to happen. Society cannot bear the responsibility for individuals. A womans husband can provide the income while she goes through pregnancy. Now we most certainly have couples who PLAN pregnancies knowing that they will get time off and other considerations, thus burdening our economy.

This one doesn’t like you if you’re pregnant or disabled: “If you have a family AWESOME!! But ON THE JOB! If at any time I feel your physical condition or health will impeede your ability to work efficently and professionaly then I will either let you go or simply not hire you.”

AND “If you are pregnant Sorry NOT hiring you. Not because I am thinking "oh god I will hire them only to loose them" But because again in MY business it is a safety issue. I can not afford the insurance claim if a dog jumps on you and hurts you or your unborn baby.” (He’s identified himself enough that some lawyer is probably issuing a subpoena for his IP address as we speak).

Bravo, management. Bravo. I hope your employees figure out you posted these comments and sue the stuffing out of you.

Six Ways You Might Be Discriminated Against If You Put Family First

While there's no specific law covering discrimination against employees due to family responsibilities, there are laws that may protect you if your employer is big enough.

1. Sick/disabled family members

If an immediate family member (or you) has a medical condition that requires regular doctor's appointments, you may well be entitled to up to 12 weeks a year of unpaid leave. This leave can be intermittent, which means that you get up to about 60 days a year or 480 hours. (That's a whole lot of doctor's appointments.)
This applies only if you need to miss work for a serious medical condition of a family member, AND your employer has at least 50 employees, AND you've been there at least a year.
If you know you will need this type of leave, make sure that you notify HR in advance so you make sure you're covered. If you think you qualify and they claim you don't, then contact an employment lawyer in your state to discuss your rights.

2. Sex stereotyping

There's no law making sexual stereotyping illegal, but it may fall within sex discrimination if your employer has 15 or more employees. For instance, . . .

Read the rest on AOL Jobs.




Thanks again to Gina Misiroglu of Red Room for putting me in touch with the AOL people!